Wrebtch



A. C. ALLAN.

WRENCH.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 27. I919.

l ,fifififi o Patented J 11116 17, 1919.

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ALLENG. ALLAN, OFCHIOAGO, ILLINOIS.

WRENCH.

Specification of Letters Patent. Pate ted Junta 1m 1919 Application filed March 27, 1919. l SeriatNq. 285,530. a

To all whom it may concern."

Be it known thatI, ALLEN G. ALLAN, citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and a useful Improvements in Wrenches, of which, the following is a specification. 7

My lnventlon pertalns to'wrenches, plier "invention is to provide an appliance of this type, either fitted with one handle or a pair of handles in the form of pliers, which, while simple in structure and hence economical to manufacture, will have a widerange of action or operative capacity, and in order to permit a long range of sliding movement of the reciprocatory jaw todeal with articles such as nuts, screws, etc., of widely differing dimensions, without causing. the handie or handles to assume undesirable and in eflicient positions, I make the fulcrum or,

pivot-pin of the one or more handles adjustable or shiftable to difierent positions. In

addition the structure is such that the mov-V able, jaw may bereadily and easily detached from the appliance when desired thus permitting substitution of another of different form. v a

In order that-those skilled in this art may understand the various advantages accruing from the employment of this invention I have illustrated several embodiments of the same in theaccomp'anying drawing forming a part of this specification and throughout the several Lviews of which like reference characters refer to the same parts.

same;

In this drawing: I

Figure l is a face view of one form of the improved wrench illustrating in dotted lines'the position of the handle which permits release of the sliding jaw;

Fig. 2 is a central section through the Fig. 3 f'is a fragmentary section showing a different arrangement of the fulcrum or D vo p n; a d

, Fig 4t shows the invention applied to a pa'irof pliers y Referring first to the wrench of Figs. 1

and 2 it will be seen that the appliance includes a body 10 comprising two, spaced, parallel, plate portions ll and 12 having integral therewith a clamping-j aw 13 of usual and ordinary construction. Coacting with such aw isanother similar clamping-jaw 141 having'a base portion 15 received and slidable between the parts 11 and 12 toward and from the-main jaw. Tohold these parts in position the element 15 is providedwith a rib 16- ac'oommodated and reciprocable in a groove 17 in the inner face of the part 11. These two walls 11 and 12 are equipped with round registering fulcrum or hearing recesses or holes 18, 19 and 20 connected together by'straight slots or passages 21 and 22 of less widththan the diameter of any one of the three cylindrical bearings which they connect, Such alined openings accommodate a single fulcrum or pivot-pin having a central round part 23 revoluble or oscillatory in a similarly-shaped bearing 24 in an operating handle or lever 25 having at one end a rounded enlargement 26 of circular shape rockingly engaging a similar cavity or recess'27 in the part 15. This fulr crum or pivot-pin projects from, opposite sides of the handle member and such cylindrical parts are flattened on opposite sides so that its transverse dimension at that point is substantially equal to the width of, the slots 21 and 22, the remainder of the pin being of the larger-diameter of the bearings 18, 19 and 20 in any one of which the pin is adapted to fit, being shiftable at will from one to the other. One end of such fulcrumpin is equipped with a flat head 29 and its other end with a washer 30 and retaining cotter-pin 31.

Assuming that the pin is in any one of its bearings 18 19 or 20, the wrenchmay be used in-the ordinary way by applying its jaws to thenut, bolt, screw or other article to be'tightened or loosened, and thenturned in the lusuial manner, the jaws having a firm' and secure grip on the nut or other member to which it "is applied. In thus working the wrench when its jaws aretight on'the nut, a pull onthehandle causes the fulcrum-pin to press against that curved surface of its bearing remote from the aw and there is no tendency for the pin to travel through either of the connecting passages, into either ofthe other hearings, consequently there is no danger of the pin becoming displaced or of, wearing awaythe corner portions of the walls ofthe hearings or connecting passages.

To turn or operate a nut of different size,

it may require that the jaws be either farther apart or nearer together, and, in order to have the handle occupy much the same desirajble operating or angular position as before, it may be necessary to shift the fulcrum-pm into one or the other of the re- Inammg bearings. This is doneby graspmg the opposite ends of the pin with the thumb and forefinger, turning it to bringits flattened part of reduced cross-sect1onal d mension into register with the connecting slot, causing the'pm to traverse such slot and ente'r' the' desired bearing, and then rotating 7 the 'pin' in such bearing -to destroy the register' ofitsiflattened PELlil'Wlilll the connecting passages, whereupon the handle can be turnedon the fulcrum-pin in the usual way parts. The positionsv of these bearings are so without. danger of disarrangement of the chosen that there are no gaps in the opera- 7 tive dimensions between the 'jaws over the whole range of movement of the slidable jaw, and it is also ofadvantage to have the operative range of movement of the reciprocatory jaw for any position of the fulerum-pln overlap that of the jaw when the pin is in the next bearing, either way, so that formuts. of certain sizes covered by such overlapping rangesthe handle may occupy either one of two positions, dependent upon which one of the two hearings in question is occupied by the pin.

.1 Furthemiore, regardless of which bearing" the pivot-pin is in, the handle may be swung It (will be appreciated, therefore, that the wrench isiu-sa ble through a wide range of dimensions of the articles operated upon withithe handle, by reason ofthe change of position of the fulcrum-pin, always in a con- ,venient position for favorable and powerfulil-CtiOIl. a

In some cases it 1s desirable to have the i ful;crL 1 m-or pivottPin operable by the handle itself rather than independently and. accordinglyf in Fig. 3 I have shown su'chra construction. This structure is practical1ythe same .as the other except that the pivot-pin 32, flattened as in .the other case, is rigid ,with or fixed to the handle 33. WVhen therefore, it is desired to transfer the pin from one bearing to anothenthe handle is'turned I to v,bfringitsfiat part into alinement with the connecting slot through which it is .pushed by the handleto the'nextbearing. When the ;handle is natural or normal jaw-op- ,scribed above.

crating position, however, thepirr and slots are out of register and the pin cannot leave the bearing which 1t then occupies.

H i In the device, of Fig. 4:, the same general idea is carried out in the form of pliers with double handles 34: and 35, the former integral with the bifurcated jaw member and the latter corresponding to the oscillatory handle of the other appliances. In this case the fulcrum 'or'pivot-pin 36 may be rigid with, or turn with relation to, the handlemember or lever 35, all as hasbeen fully explained above. 7 i

It is to be understood that the invention is not limited and restricted tothe precise and exact features of construction presented because these maybe Varied withincomparatively wide limits without departure from the heart and essence-of the invention and without the sacrifice of any of. its'substam the fulcrum-pin, associated with; the lever,

movable from one bearing to the other, or Whether the fulcrum-pin is fixed :to the stationary aw member and the connected bearings therefor are present in the lever% or handle, but the former construction is to be preferred, and consequently this is the type illustrated in detailin the drawingsand de- Such modified structure, however, is deemed to be "an equivalent of those presented in the appended claims.

I claim: i 4

1. In a wrench of the charaeter'described', the combination of a bifurcated member having a fixed clamping-jaw, a companion sliding clamping-jaw movable toward and from said first jaw and having a base-portion accommodated inthe bifurcated part of said, member, an-opera'ting leverhaving a direct rocking connection with said baseportion, and a fulcrum-pinfixed to andprojecting from opposite sidesi of said lever, each of such projections havinga reduced transverse dimension, the spaced walls of said bifurcated member having a plurality of registering bearings forsaid fulcrumpin, thebearings of each wall being connected together by one or more narrower,

passages, whereby said pin mayoccupy and be retained in anypair of said bearings and act as a fulcrum for said operatingdever and may be shifted to any other pair of bearings by reason of said reduced dimen sions which permitit to pass through-said connecting passages when in register therewith, substantially as described.

2. In an appliance 0f the character described, the combination of a handle -member having a bifurcated portion provided with a fixed clamping-jaw, a companion sliding clamping-jaw movable toward and from, said first jaw and having a recessed base portion accommodated in the bifurcated part of said member, an operating-lever having a rounded end fitted in said recess, and a fulcrum-pin fixed to and projecting from opposite sides of said lever each of such projections having a reduced transverse dimension, the spaced walls of said bifurcated portion of the handle member having a plurality of registering bearings for said fulcrum-pin, the bearings of each wall being connected together by one or morenarrower passages, whereby said fulcrum-pin may 00- cupy and be retained in any pair of said bearings and act as a fulcrum for said operating-lever and may be shifted from any pair of said bearings to any other pair by reason of said reduced dimensions which permit it to pass through said connecting passages when in register therewith, substantially as described.

ALLEN C. ALLAN.

Gouies of this patent may he obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner or Ifatenfts, Washington, 1;. c, 

